ANAHEIM — Ducks center Ryan Kesler has options, none of them very good or easy if he wants to continue his hockey career. He said Sunday in his first public comments in about a month that he was in the process of making an informed decision about his future, with the aid of some of the nation’s top hip specialists.

It’s possible he could undergo the same hip resurfacing surgery that enabled former Florida Panthers defenseman Ed Jovanovski to continue his career for an additional season in 2013-14 and helped tennis superstar Andy Murray return to the practice court earlier this month.

It’s also possible Kesler could have hip replacement surgery, which would be a career-ending procedure but make his every day life much better. Simple tasks such as putting his socks on and tying his shoes in the morning could be much easier than they are at present.

“We’re just gathering information now and talking to the best surgeons in the country and probably go see what they say,” said Kesler, who underwent major arthroscopic surgery after the 2016-17 season that revealed damaged cartilage and loose bone fragments floating in his hip socket.

Hip resurfacing differs from the more invasive hip replacement surgery in that the procedure allows an athlete to continue to participate in a sport at a relatively high level. Athletes can run, skate, jump, climb and play contact sports as before the injury.

“It’s as different as putting on a hat, or cutting your head off,” Dr. Peter Brooks, an orthopedic surgeon and chief of surgery at Euclid Hospital in Ohio, said in an article posted on the Cleveland Clinic’s website. “Ultimately, patients with hip resurfacing can return to all of their previous activities, including running, climbing and competitive sports. Most people with hip replacements cannot achieve this.”

Kesler acknowledged that complete hip replacement would end his career.

“It’s one of the big decisions I have to make in the future,” he said.

Hip pain limited Jovanovski to six games in 2012-13. He underwent Platelet Rich Plasma therapy in Germany following the season, which was then an experimental procedure but is much more commonplace now. When it didn’t resolve the issue, he underwent hip resurfacing surgery.

Jovanovski played 37 games in 2013-14 and then retired after an 18-year career with the Panthers, Canucks and Coyotes. Kesler said he had spoken to Jovanovski, a teammate when they were both with the Canucks from 2003-04 to 2005-06.

“It’s still fun playing,” Kesler said. “I love competing and I love being around the guys, and this year, the hip just got worse. That’s why we’ve got to find some options for not just hockey but my life, my lifestyle alone. Simple things like putting socks on in the morning is tough. I’m weaning myself off the medication and should be done in a month here. After that, we can start discussing other things.”

Kesler, who turns 35 on Aug. 31, has three years and more than $20 million remaining on his contract. He could agree to a buyout, but Ducks owners Henry and Susan Samueli have been hesitant to go that route in recent years. Kesler also could agree to be placed on long-term injured reserve.

If the Ducks put him on LTIR, they could get salary-cap relief, and he would still be paid.

“I don’t think anybody knows except the people who are living in it, the pain from day to day and the stuff I had to do going on the ice,” Kesler said. “I don’t want to get into telling the story because I chose to do it and I chose to do the rehab for seven to eight hours a day and I wanted to give a good effort. I was in a good spot. It’s just the grind of the season and the back-to-back games and the four games in six nights, that’s what broke me down and broke my hip down over the course of the year.”

Elliott Teaford covers the Anaheim Ducks for the Orange County Register and the Southern California News Group. He covered the Ducks for 12 years, including the Stanley Cup season, for the Los Angeles Times and the Daily Breeze before returning to the beat in 2018 for SCNG. He also covered the Lakers for five seasons, including their back-to-back NBA championships in 2009 and '10. He once made a jump shot over future Utah Jazz center Mark Eaton during a pickup game in 1980 at Cypress College.

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